In This Desert, In Darkness
by Phoenix1337
Summary: Really AU. Megatron needs help dealing with the Autobots, so he calls in the one bounty hunter never known to fail: A deadly Seeker known as Phoenix. She brings with her two partners, Thundercracker and Skywarp. Together they are an unstoppable force. But a terrible accident leaves them wondering if the Decepticon cause is really what is used to be... and if they should stay.
1. Bothunters

Jasper, Nevada was about the most peaceful place in the United States. Nothing much happened there. Unless, that is, you count the fact that a race of highly advanced alien robots were hiding in the desert there. They had come to Earth because their own planet was uninhabitable. There were two factions: the Autobots and the Decepticons. The Autobots preferred peace and valued the lives of the humans above their own. The Decepticons were warmongers that wanted to rule the planet, and afterward, the universe. They would stop at nothing to get what they wanted. To them, the lives of humans meant nothing.

The Autobots and the Decepticons had been locked in civil war for as long as any of them could remember. The commander of the Decepticon armada, Megatron, had been the one to spark the war. He had tried to convince the High Council to bow to his twisted will. A librarian by the name of Orion Pax had destroyed any chance the tyrant had. The High Council had been moved by Orion's words, and Megatron had been shunned. Made bitter by his failure, Megatron had assembled followers and named them Decepticons.

Orion had traveled to the core of Cybertron itself, searching for answers to stop the rebellions. Vector Sigma, the core, had deemed Orion worthy of being the leader of the forces of good on Cybertron. Orion Pax was bestowed the Matrix of Leadership, and thus became the Autobot leader Optimus Prime. He could not prevent Cybertron from being corrupted and was forced to lead his Autobots away from their beloved home. The Decepticons, unrelenting, had pursued the Autobots. They discovered a small planet called Earth by its dominating species, humanity.

Their first priority became energon. Earth was rich with it. Optimus could not risk the lives of the humans by letting the Decepticons mine for energon, so he commanded his Autobots to prevent this at all costs. One by one the valiant Autobots fell until only four were left alive. Recently, the four keys to the Omega Lock were found. Megatron used the device to create a base of operations on Earth, and destroyed the hidden Autobot base in Jasper. Optimus Prime had been trapped inside the base when it was wiped from the face of the earth. It seemed that all was lost.

This is where I come in. My name is Phoenix. I am a Decepticon, and I was called to Earth to assist Megatron in hunting down the remaining Autobots. But, like all other bounty hunters, there was a price for my services, and my price was unique. In exchange for destroying the Autobots, I would get to pick a Decepticon from his ranks to be my sparkmate. Megatron had disliked this idea immensely, but I was the only Decepticon left on Cybertron with the skills to hunt the Autobots. He would just have to deal with it.

The Decepticon base of operations wasn't hard to find. I spotted it easily and maneuvered my ship to land on the top landing pad. An Eradicon escort group flew out to guide me. It was led by a sleek silver jet- another Seeker. I hadn't seen another Seeker outside my team for a long time. My commlink beeped suddenly.

"This is Air Commander Starscream, second in command to Lord Megatron. Who pilots this vessel?"

I grinned to myself. Megatron had sent his second in command to greet me. How nice.

"My name is Phoenix. Megatron called me here to hunt down the remaining Autobot scum on this planet."

The silver jet dipped in the air, transforming smoothly and landing on the platform. He was a handsome one, I mused. He stepped back as I landed my ship. I stretched as I stood from my seat and hit the intercom.

"Thundercracker, Skywarp, we have reached our destination. Assemble as the loading deck."

Thundercracker and Skywarp were Seekers like me. They were my partners. I strolled leisurely down the corridors of my ship. A purple flash disrupted the air in front of me, startling me. Skywarp popped into existence, grinning crazily. I growled.

"Skywarp, you idiot! I told you to assemble at the loading deck, not on top of me!"

Skywarp cackled.

"Is Starscream here? Did you see him?"

Skywarp hopped from one pede to the other excitedly, his red optics glowing. I sighed.

"Yes, Skywarp. Starscream is here. Now, get your aft to the loading deck before I send it there in pieces!"

Skywarp cackled again and teleported away in another purple flash. I shook my helm and continued on my way, brushing my claws against the walls. It was so quiet. It was always quiet on my ship. I had no actual crew, simply my team. I liked it that way. Minions would just get in my way.

Thundercracker and Skywarp were waiting for me. I pressed a small button on the wall, and the wall slowly opened. I winced as bright light hit my sensitive optics. Even through my visor the sun's light hurt. I disliked this planet already. Starscream stood with his hands clasped behind his back, his wings held high. I stepped delicately from the ship and saluted smartly.

"Phoenix, at your service."

Starscream smirked.

"Indeed. Follow me, Megatron is inside."

Thundercracker and Skywarp fell into formation behind me. The interior of the Decepticon headquarters was noticeably cooler and darker. Our pedesteps echoed loudly in the empty halls. I memorized the route, just in case I got lost, which I did often on the ground. The dark gray walls shone as if they had been recently polished. I liked a Decepticon that kept their dwellings clean. I had worked for several messy cons, and none of them had been particularly pleasant. In fact, I had killed most of them after I had been paid. After all, if a Decepticon couldn't look after himself, he wouldn't be of much use in the future.

Starscream led us down many twisting hallways to the heart of the headquarters. The room was magnificent. The walls were black trimmed with purple, the classic Decepticon color scheme, but there were golden highlights. Statues of famous Decepticons lined a walkway to a throne. Above the throne was a banner with the Decepticon insignia on it. Crimson lights cast an eerie glow in the room. Starscream walked forward and knelt in front of the throne. More specifically, he knelt in front of the figure sitting in the throne. It was the great Lord Megatron himself. I followed Starscream's example and knelt, Thundercracker and Skywarp doing the same. Megatron smirked.

"Phoenix. So nice of you to come."

I looked up. Megatron looked magnificent sitting on the throne. His very aura was power in itself. I dipped my helm respectfully.

"I arrived as fast as I could."

Megatron sighed.

"I can only hope you do a better job than the beast that Shockwave brought."

I looked up again, narrowing my optics. Megatron continued.

"He was supposed to be the ultimate Autobot hunter, but he turned on us. Over half of my forces were destroyed before we managed to eliminate the beast."

So I had competition. Even more reason to show off.

"I shall not fail you, Lord Megatron."

Starscream shot a look at me. I couldn't read it accurately, but it was either a look of reproach or a look of curiosity. I hoped it was the second. I didn't want to already have an enemy. It would only make things harder.

"Good. You are dismissed. Starscream will show you three to your quarters."

I rose and saluted again as Starscream took the lead. His pretty wings fluttered nervously. I could almost sense Skywarp's excitement, but Thundercracker seemed pretty apathetic about everything. He usually was anyway. We passed a few Eradicons, but they averted their gazes quickly. It was such a shame. I liked being admired and showing off my power.

"What is Cybertron like now?" Starscream inquired.

I sighed sadly, glancing at the ceiling. The lights here were red as well.

"Dead. All the Decepticons and Autobots there are starving because of the energon shortage. You saw how Kaon looked when you found the Omega Lock, yes?"

Starscream nodded.

"The rest of Cybertron is either the same or worse. To be honest, we're better off here. Any attempts to survive back home would be ludicrous, I am afraid."

Starscream's wings drooped.

"What of Vos?"

I motioned for Skywarp to explain, and he did so eagerly.

"Vos is being rebuilt. We found more Seekers, and they're restoring our home piece by piece."

Starscream stopped in front of an intricately detailed door. He entered a code and the door slid open. Inside was perhaps the second biggest room I had ever seen. It was multileveled with no stairs, the classic Vosian design. It was perfect for Seekers. Even Thundercracker looked impressed. Starscream guided us inside.

"This is where you will be staying. Feel free to choose which level you want."

I immediately flew up to the second level from the top. Skywarp and Thundercracker chose the two below mine. I observed the level. It was simple yet elegant with everything a Seeker would need. I settled comfortably in the berth near the edge. Starscream hovered in front of me. I grinned.

"It feels like home."

Starscream nodded, his vermillion optics glowing.

"There is a meeting in four breems. Don't miss it."

I nodded and yawned.

"Yeah, whatever you command and all that jazz." I mumbled back.

Before long I slipped into a comfortable recharge.

"Phoenix… Phoenix… Phoenix… Phoenix…"

I growled and rolled over, intentionally whacking the annoying mech in the face with my wings. Whoever it was stumbled backward and off the edge of the level. He yelped, and I heard thrusters powering up.

"What was that for?" Skywarp growled.

I yawned and smoothly leaped from my berth… into empty air. It was my turn to be surprised as I tumbled down for a few seconds. Skywarp burst out laughing above me. I snarled and shot upward, slamming into him. We wrestled for a few minutes until a laser blast singed my wings. Skywarp shot away in panic while I scanned for the new threat. I spotted Starscream lowering his smoking null rays. He didn't look happy.

"Phoenix, Skywarp, I do not approve of wrestling here. Take it somewhere else."

I sighed in disappointment.

"Fine. Come one, Skywarp. Our Air Commander does not want us to break anything in here."

Skywarp teleported away randomly, startling Starscream.

"What? He can teleport?"

I shrugged.

"It makes up for his stupidity. How about you show me around this place? Getting lost is not on my agenda today."

Starscream nodded.

"Very well."

I grinned. I actually wanted to get to know my Air Commander. What was the saying- keep your friends close, keep your enemies closer? Yes, that was it. If the silver Seeker turned out to be someone I would rather have in my rifle sights, I wanted to know it. Starscream led me around the barracks first.

"Our forces have been steadily decreasing. We have plenty of drones left, but as far as warriors go, we're lacking. Dreadwing was the last to go."

I nodded absently.

"Who is left here?" I questioned.

Starscream gestured toward the quarters of each mech as he spoke, except for Megatron.

"Well, there's Knockout, out medic, Soundwave, our Communications Officer, myself, Shockwave, and then our commander."

I blinked in surprise.

"Only five?"

Starscream nodded sadly. His features hardened suddenly.

"Unless you count Arachnid, yes. She used to be a Decepticon, but she turned traitor when she ripped Breakdown apart. We've been searching for her, but we believe the Autobots got to her first."

I winced mentally. The once-proud Decepticons were in serious trouble. Starscream jumped up a flight of stairs, stopping at a magnificent set of doors. Not many would think doors could be magnificent, but these were. Starscream grinned and pointed at the doors.

"This is where Lord Megatron resides."

I ran my claws over the doors, running a deep scan of the interior. The inside was even better than the outside. Megatron was inside as well. He was gazing out a window, his hands clasped behind his back much like Starscream did. Megatron almost looked like his former self, his gladiator self. He was stronger now and more cunning, much more evil.

"If Megatron wants to keep his Decepticon Empire alive, he needs to train his forces. Do you think he would be willing to let me train you?"

Silence answered me. I whirled, battle-ready. Starscream had vanished. I growled quietly, reaching for my swords. The air felt different. It was like something foul was polluting it, something evil and dangerous. I waited, silently scanning the area.

"So Megatron found some more pawns. How lovely."

I tensed. The voice seemed to echo off every wall. I began to trace the echoes.

"Who are you?"

The voice laughed darkly.

"Mm, I do believe Starscream introduced me earlier. You know, I think I'll make his helm my trophy. Did you know that I hunt endangered species? Well, they aren't endangered until I meet them."

I growled, my entire senses alert. I had to keep whoever it was talking so I could figure out where they were.

"So you are hunting Seekers now?"

More laughter.

"Yes I am. Should I take his wings instead? They would make nice trophies as well, don't you think?"

There. The origin of the voice was in the top corner of the stairwell. I grinned and reached into my subspace, pulling out some of my special throwing stars. It was quiet for a while until my opponent shifted, loudly scraping against the wall. I threw my stars with blinding speed. There was a cry of pain and something spindly fell from the corner. I plucked my stars from her throat and flicked the energon off, ignoring the dying hatred in her dimming optics. I backed up and knocked on Megatron's door. The tyrant opened it and sighed. I bowed gracefully and pointed at the dark heap on the floor.

"My Lord, I bring you my first victim. She will cost nothing extra."

Megatron's optics lit up.

"Arachnid. Very good Phoenix. You are dismissed."

Dismissed. I suppressed a growl and the bitter thought that I should have recieved something besides that.I bowed again and leaped down the stairs. Starscream had to be somewhere around here. Arachnid couldn't have taken him far… Aha. I caught a glimpse of silver wings fluttering in panic. I drug the panicking Seeker into the hall and knelt beside him. He glared at me.

"Oh, Starscream, you really need my help. I will make a deal with you. If you agree to let me train you, I will not speak of this… incident."

Starscream rolled his optics. I reached forward and sliced the web off of his face. He growled at me.

"It's a deal."

I laughed and stood, walking away. I glanced back at him before I turned the corner.

"By the way, there is a meeting in half a breem. Megatron would be very displeased if you were late."

With that I continued on my way, leaving Starscream to untangle himself from Arachnid's web.

* * *

If I managed to ever become the Decepticon leader, the first thing I would do would be to eliminate meetings. They were boring and really didn't accomplish anything. I reclined in my chair and cupped my hands behind my helm. Beside me, Skywarp was doodling on a datapad. Thundercracker was listening to music that I had never heard before. Knockout was frowning at a scuff on his arm. Starscream was staring at the wall behind Megatron. The only one listening was Soundwave, but I wasn't sure if the silent mech was paying attention or not. Perhaps this was the reason why the Decepticons were dying off.

"Phoenix, I asked you a question."

I flinched and looked guiltily at Megatron. Annoyance flickered in his purple optics. I swallowed nervously and grinned. Shame washed through me.

"What was the question?"

Megatron sighed and glanced at the ceiling.

"I asked you if you planned to stay after you complete your mission."

I shook my helm.

"No. Once my business is finished here, I plan to travel back to Cybertron and other planets for work. That is, unless I find a sparkmate here."

Knockout glanced at me, suddenly interested. Megatron nodded slowly.

"Very well. Phoenix, I expect you to begin immediately. Dismissed."

Everyone stood and filed out. I stretched and called my partners to my side. Skywarp looked excited again.

"Are we going to hunt Autobots now?"

I nodded. A rare grin graced Thundercracker's features. His ruby optics glowed with the same lights of the room. Starscream walked over to me.

"I trust you know the way out?"

I dipped my helm. Skywarp took point anyway, dashing through the halls. I had to admit I was glad when I saw the sky again. I had been getting claustrophobic in the Decepticon headquarters. I stood on the platform for a minute, enjoying the warmth of the sun.

"Skywarp, Thundercracker, your territory will be the north hemisphere. Be careful. The Autobots may be disoriented, but they can still be dangerous. One more thing…"

They looked at me expectantly. I smirked.

"Lock and load, boys. We're hunting."

* * *

**Not really happy with the way this first chapter turned out, but oh well. It's going to be my longest story to date. I have a few more chapters ready to be posted; the word count is over 32,000. Yay for me, I suppose!**

**People, I have a question. there are 2 stories I am looking for on FF. One is a Ratchet/Soundwave story, the other is about Prowl. The first is when Soundwave is shot by an experimental weapon and all his cassettes except one die and his processor is really damaged. The other is where Prowl is a Decepticon but he wants to defect to the Autobot side and his life is really hard... and I can't find the stories anywhere! PLZ HELP ME! I would forever be in your debt!**

**I just realize I have been forgetting disclaimers. I don't own anything I write about! Sorry if you thought I did. I only wish.**

**Have a good day! (or night)**


	2. Secondary Motives

**This chapter is crap. I couldn't even get it to 2,000 words even after such a long time. So unlike my awesome 4,000 word first chapter. I'm sorry. Please, enjoy it as best you can.**

* * *

The skies of this planet were different than anything I had ever experienced before. Sure, I had been to other organic worlds, but this one… this one had a tiny difference that set it apart from every other sky. Perhaps it was the shade of blue, perhaps it was the thickness of the atmosphere… whatever it was I liked it. For a few moments I forgot about why I was there and simply enjoyed the sky. The wind tickled my wings pleasantly.

My scanners suddenly beeped. I was instantly on full alert, raking my sharp gaze over the ground far below. There was energon on the move. But where was the signal coming from? There were no cars, no motorcycles, nothing I could see. There was no shape on my scanners either, but the energon reading was clear.

/Thundercracker, Skywarp, rendezvous to my location. I picked up an energon reading but I can't find anything else./

My team, loyal as ever, responded with quick affirmatives. Within minutes Skywarp had teleported him and Thundercracker to my side. We circled the area, following the energon reading until it lead us to a military base. A lot of humans were milling about, doing various things that looked vaguely familiar to the boot camp back on Cybertron. Skywarp groaned.

"Those squishy things probably found a rock of ours and are taking it in to look at it."

Thundercracker agreed. I was about to dismiss them when I noticed something. One of the buildings was huge, bigger than it needed to be for humans.

"Wait. Look at the building. What do you see?"

Thundercracker and Skywarp were quiet for a minute. We kept circling, just above the clouds so the humans wouldn't see us, using our scanners to see. Skywarp, in all his great intelligence, replied with, "A building."

Thundercracker dipped a bit lower, deep in thought.

"It is larger than what the humans would need." He finally spoke.

I would have clapped my servos if I had them at the time.

"The humans would only need a building that big for two reasons: one, they are shielding a secret weapon or… hiding Autobots."

Skywarp cackled and armed his missiles, but Thundercracker cut him off.

"Warp! We can't fire on them yet! We don't know exactly what is in there. We need to report it to Megatron first and wait for his command."

I banked right and ordered my team to follow. Thundercracker was correct. Before we did anything, we needed to consult Lord Megatron. Soundwave supplied us with a groundbridge and we were transported to the halls of the Nemesis. Megatron's throne room was nearby, so we didn't have far to walk.

The great doors slid open without our bidding, which set me on edge, but I dutifully knelt in front of Lord Megatron. He looked almost apathetic about seeing us.

"Lord Megatron, I bring information. While hunting I discovered a human military base. Onsite they had a hangar that was much too large for them. It could contain a secret weapon or Autobot survivors. What do you wish us to do?"

Megatron thrummed his talons on the edge of his throne, his crimson optics narrowing dangerously.

"Phoenix. You will investigate this hangar under cover of night. Thundercracker and Skywarp shall remain here unless you need backup. Dismissed."

I glanced at my team uncomfortably. This wasn't the first time we had been separated, but we always functioned better as a whole. So many things could go wrong without all of us watching each other's wings. But Lord Megatron had given an order. If I wanted to be paid, I had to follow it.

Skywarp danced on his pedes anxiously as soon as we left the throne room.

"Will you be all right, Phoenix?"

I sighed and shot him a glare.

"I am a gladiator, Skywarp, and one of the best. I can handle myself."

Skywarp didn't look convinced.

"But it's been a long time since you fought like that. What if you forget how? Even with my teleporting TC ad I might not get to you in time."

My team worried for me a lot. I was the youngest of us three though I never showed it. I stopped and faced the black and purple Seeker, my wings raised high in a commanding position.

"Skywarp. Do you remember the battle on the planet Skaro with the species that could electrocute us? How I fought them off on my own? Or the firefight on Raxacoricofallipatorius, where you had to leave me to destroy the enemy shielding?"

Skywarp nodded sheepishly, his gaze falling with his wings. I sighed and rubbed his shoulder gently.

"Believe me. I can take care of myself. Now, nightfall won't come for a few hours. Go stalk Starscream or color the walls. This place needs some color and I need to prepare."

Skywarp looked up again and grinned devilishly before teleporting in a flash of purple. Thundercracker cast a look of betrayal at me.

"He is going to destroy the Decepticons with paint bombs, and you gave him permission."

I shrugged and began walking toward the Seeker quarters.

"In my opinion, he's more destructive when he's bored. Besides, it keeps him from worrying."

Thundercracker chuckled quietly.

"I still can't understand how you can pronounce that name so perfectly. Raxacorisomthing-or-other."

I smirked and remained silent. Thundercracker entered our shared quarters and glanced at me questioningly. I looked down the halls.

"I need to meditate."

Thundercracker rolled his optics.

"Right, that circuit-su stuff. Whatever."

I turned and was about to walk down the hall when I realized I had no idea where the training rooms were. I sighed.

/Starscream? Where are the training rooms?/

Almost instantly I was pinged back with a floor plan of the Nemesis and a highlighted path. I followed the yellow guideline and soon found myself in front of a set of double doors. There was a servo scanner beside it, so I placed my servo on it and waited. After precisely 2.5 astroseconds the door silently slid open, revealing a simple but large holodeck with a control panel on the other side. I shrugged and strode over to it, activating the screen and taking out my data transfer cable. Once the files were downloaded, the holodeck shimmered into an exact replica of the dojo I had been trained in.

There was a raised platform in the center of the dojo without any steps. The walls were decorated with weapons and deep scratches and a few tattered banners. I snarled silently as I ran my claws along one of the most impressive gouges. This one had been made by my chevron when my master had attacked me without warning. I pressed my claws against the broken side and remembered how it had snapped off in the wall.

I shook my helm sharply and gracefully leaped up onto the raised platform, folding my legs beneath me and shuttering my optics.

About a joor later I was roused from my meditation by the sound of someone entering. I secretly watched as Soundwave looked around my dojo before his… gaze?... settled on me. Silently he walked over and jumped up beside me. I looked at him questioningly.

"Do you know Circuit Su?"

A single, fluid dip of his helm. I lifted an optic ridge in surprise.

"How about Ninjitsu?"

Another dip. Impressive.

"Huka-huka? Danzan-ryu? Gaidojutsu? Kajukenbo?"

Yes, yes, yes, and no. I was definitely impressed now. Something stood out to me. All of those fighting styles were taught by my master. Was it possible…?

"Did you train under Master Shattersky?"

Soundwave hesitated for a long time before he finally nodded. My optics widened behind my visor. Poor mech. Shattersky was a brutal teacher, merciless and unforgiving. He wasn't a real martial arts master, not legally, but I was one of the unlucky few to be chosen by him.

Soundwave suddenly spoke with Megatron's voice and I jumped back before cursing my jumpiness. It was only a recording, requesting me to come to the throne room. I sighed and flared my wings before standing.

"Thank you Soundwave. Good orn, sir."

With those parting words I left the training room. Because I had left, I did not see Soundwave walk up to the deep gouge made by my chevron and trace it almost forlornly, as if remembering a painful memory.

I arrived at the throne room quickly and entered. To my surprise there was no one except Megatron there. I had expected some Vehicons to be worshipping the ground he walked on, but it was just the two of us. A warning flag went up in my processor and I approached cautiously.

"You called for me, Lord Megatron?"

He turned around and grinned, baring his sharp denta.

"Indeed I did, Phoenix. I have a mission for you."

Interesting. A mission on top of a mission.

"What is it that you require, my Lord?"

Megatron seated himself comfortably in his throne. The aura of power radiated off him, but it didn't really impress me.

"I want you to capture one of the Autobot's pet humans if not all three. Shockwave requires them."

I held in a shudder. I could imagine what Shockwave and his twisted processor needed them for. But, credits were credits.

"Will I be paid extra?" I asked.

Megatron dipped his helm and I grinned.

"Then consider it a deal, sir."

* * *

**Terrible place to end a chapter but I couldn't figure out anything else. Meh.**


End file.
